Pilates and Fat Blast Cardio/Weight vs Inches

Did the usual Pilates in the morning and Fat Blast Cardio last night. We did go in a little early so I could get some ab work done in the exercise weight room. Cardio was fantastic though!

Rounded out the night by making a flounder fish dinner that had near 50 grams of protein in it.

Now I mentioned weight. A lot of people tend to say that weight is just a number on a scale.

It is, but it also determines your BMI.

If you didn't know, your BMI is calculated off of your height and weight.

Right now my BMI puts me at Obese. To bring it to normal I have to lose another 42 pounds.

Yes, it is fantastic that I am losing inches, but unless that number starts moving DOWN my BMI is going to be obese and my doctor, nor I, will be happy. Just seems like I have been stuck at 178. And for weeks that I have been doing lots of exercising it seems like it would be going down a little bit. 

I have read that it is actually a good thing that I have. The inches being lost vs weight being lost. It means I am doing something right, because my body is turning fat into muscle.

It is still rather disheartening.

Maybe someone could come along and #sharetheirstory and reassure me.

I never thought I'd.....and GOALS!

actually find myself waking up at 6:30 AM to go exercise.

But I did!

It started with Angie, who is a great instructor, doing 30 minutes of cycling.

Now, I know I said that I felt some muscle definition in my legs already, but cycling is a whole new ball of wax with my legs. I have decided to pick up a weekly cycling class because I obviously need it! Left the classroom sweating.

We went from the bikes to the downstairs where we did 30 minutes of boot camp. Basically a lot of push ups and jumping jacks and weights. Was still sweating.

Then we did a 30 minute yoga. Now, I never did yoga after doing cycling and cardio. WHEW!!
It was hard to hold some of the moves. It was nice thought to cool down. I didn't wjn the lottery tree, but congrats to the guy who did!

I might try to find a 1K fun run/walk this summer. Next summer I want to run a 3K or 5K. Move to a 10K after that and then eventually do a full marathon. Within 3 years for everything.

I used to run cross country in 7th grade (Newbury, OH) Go Knights! I do believe I can get back to that and I have a separate goal of being able to run a mile in 8 minutes or less.

Memorial Day

The YMCA has special hours tomorrow (7AM to 11 AM) and they are having something called the..

"Memorial Day Mega-Workout" - "Hustle for the Muscle"

It starts at 8 AM and has the following:

30 minutes of cycling
30 minutes of "boot camp"
30 minutes of yoga


I am going to go and do it since there won't be the normal classes later on.

They are also having a drawing for a fund raiser and I bought one single ticket.

The prize is a $125 worth of lottery tickets via a lottery tree.

Here is to hoping!

Have a wonderful Memorial Day and I will probably update tomorrow to let you all know how it goes.

I had a wonderful snack today. Apple slices dipped in honey...YUM!

Another Day Off

We did more house work yesterday. Patching of some drywall.

Today, however, we are going to take it easy.

Morning PLUS and Zumba

Went and did PLUS with Jewel. She says her blog is in maintenance, so as soon as it is back up I will post a link. We did mostly arms and a little run back and forth. Core work. Hopefully there will be more girls there next week! I am sort of afraid that I won't be in the class for too much longer as I am slimming down quite fast.

Went to Zumba afterwards. Charlotte was instructing the class again....so a wonderful workout ensued. Got me sweating! Welcome to Burlesque (It's a Cher song we use it in part of the Zumba routine.)

Things I have noticed:

I am not as red in the face when I am done with a good workout.

I am sweating a little less.

I am told this means I am gaining endurance.

This is great!

I do have a goal of one day running a full marathon.

Mike went into the free weight room and did a few hours worth of ab/back.leg and arm workout. I can see his muscles getting bigger!

My calves

You know, that lower part of your legs, right above the ankles. In the back only.

They have always given me issue.

When I was in 7th grade I ran cross country and obviously after running for so long they stopped bothering me, but what's my best bet to help them get through this sore phase?

By the time someone answers I may be feeling better and they may be doing better.

But I'll ask anyways!

I am SO sore!

That I am taking today off.

Normally I would do a 9 AM Zumba class, but I think my aching muscles would be perfectly happy to putter around the house.


Will hit the gym tomorrow morning with PLUS and Zumba.

Wednesday/Meal and part of today

Yesterday was a crazy day. We did a lot of work around the house. Because I did so much I decided to not go to Pound Pro. I'll check it out next week.

I did go to Zumba and then did Deep Stretch Yoga. Zumba had me sweating and Yoga cooled me down. Mike went and did the usual in the exercise weight room.

Last night right before we went to bed I noticed something in my left leg.  Muscle definition!

Today I did Pilates and I noted that I could do the rolling like a ball and seal much easier. I can't do the roll up and don't really expect to for at least a minimum of six months from now. Double leg stretch is also difficult. And teasers! I am sure after awhile I will be able to get them and I will be happy and proud when I do.

Yesterday I didn't really eat breakfast. I ate lunch later. Left over chicken enchiladas. 

Today so far I had a banana for breakfast and Mike had a bowl of cereal. For lunch we ate rice with tomato sauce and hamburger with cabbage. Green beans and vanilla pudding. For dinner we had spinach and herb and garlic tilapia.  (Farm raised in Mexico.)

I will be going to Zumba in about an hour and Mike will hit that weight room.

Mike had a funny yesterday. He said he wanted to use the exercise machine bicycle. But he sat down on it and couldn't figure out how to use it. I am sure there are some buttons to press to get it going. We will figure it out later.

Til later!

Tuesday night - Fat Blast Cardio & Meals

Went in about 30 minutes before class started and did some weights on the machines. Mostly with my arms, because my arms are weak! I could only do 15 to 20 pounds on some of them. I can press 80 pounds with my legs. We all start some where!!

Mike stayed in the weight lifting room and I went to class where we worked with those large balls and weights. Did some step work also. Ran through the ladder on the ground.

It was a great class!

Onward to tomorrow!

Breakfast: Mary - Rye Bagel with butter and a banana. Water
                      Mike - Banana and a bowl of cocoa rice cereal. Milk

Lunch: Mary and Mike - Tuna noodle cassaorle, carrots and a choclate cake dessert. Orange Juice.

Dinner: Mary and Mike - Chicken enchiladas with green sauce and cheese on flour tortillas. Multi Grain chips with hummus (Green Olive) (Ended up not having any chips) Probably a cookie for desert.


YUM!

Body Shaming

So, I wanted to spend a minute to talk about body shaming.

Seems there are people out there who don't really care to see what you are doing to better yourself, they only seem to want to shame the fact that you are a little bigger then you are supposed to be, right now!

Yes, my boobs are big...actually they are not that big, but they will start to recede the longer I work out. They will maybe one day go back to a B-cup. (They are only a C cup right now.) Whatever happened to "boob" men anyways? LOL

I would love to see pictures of these people or hear what they are doing to get themselves into shape.

Love the above image!

I forgot Pilates

For some reason I thought today was Wednesday and I forgot to go to the 10 AM Pilates class.

Sorry Rebeca, I will be there Thursday.

Instead we went out in the yard and replanted some hardy hibiscus. They are beautiful when they flower! Also replanted another bush in our front yard. I forget what it is called but it gets blueberry looking fruits on them that all the birds love.

Off to a soup kitchen to eat lunch! (The Dream Center)

Core and More and what we ate today

I decided that the yoga simply wasn't enough exercise for today, so I went to a later class called 'Core and more'. It is taught by Amanda, who really works you!

We used those huge balls to exercise using weights, small balls and these stretch things that make it a more workout for your feet (or arms). The class only lasts about 30 minutes, but wow, could I feel it in my lower abs, stomach and upper thighs.

Another woman who goes to a lot of the same class I go to now said that there is a class tomorrow night before Zumba called Pound Pro. She says it is a lot of fun, so I am going to tweak my schedule tomorrow and not go to the AM Zumba Gold.

Mike went this morning and went to the weight room. He did 200 pounds as a max for his legs and did reps at 185 pounds. Ab and arms and other leg machines were also done and he does reps of about 50 to 60 pounds.

Today's Menu was as follows:

Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs, Applesauce with cinnamon and 3 slices of turkey bacon. Water to drink.

Lunch: (We usually eat lunch at a soup kitchen) Today we ate at the Armory on State Road. They had macaroni salad, deviled eggs, small sandwich with cheese and roast beef (I didn't eat the bread) rigatoni with sauce and lemonade to drink.

Dinner: Mac N Cheese with hot dog pieces, Salad and Cheese crackers. A cookie for dessert and I had a glass of chocolate milk.

Simply Yoga

Today I did Simply Yoga with Jorga. It is a full class with lots of people.

Since I have been doing the Deep Stretch Yoga once a week I was familiar with some of the moves we did. I did have to modify some of them but I can tell this class will work my core and balance.

There was a wonderful visualization done at the end of the class. So relaxing at that point.

Most of the lights were dimmed and off at the end.

Will be keeping this class in my weekly workout!

Walked today

Instead of totally taking the day off we decided to do some walking down that path.

We walked a total of SEVEN miles!

Both of our feet have little sores that are almost blisters, but not quite.

Suppose they will be fine tomorrow.

Only doing yoga tomorrow.

:)

No Pain...No Gain!!!

I have heard this saying through out my life.

Every time I stand up or sit down I find my self repeating this phrase....

Because my legs are sore. Good sore though.

My arms are too, but to a less extent. 

Look forward to only doing a light class of yoga tomorrow.

Have a fantastic rest of your Sunday!

"Diet" - (I dislike that word!)

Of course I had to say a little something about "diet". You can work out all you want, but if you continue to eat unhealthy, it isn't going to be as good of an experience.

Now, as I said, I don't like the word diet. It reminds me of removing something and maybe you like that something.  Most of the time if you remove something you like, say, chocolate, you end up craving it. Which is why I don't remove everything from what I eat.

Mike and I stopped drinking pop (Coke for you southern people and soda for you out west!) about two months ago. Sugar addiction is a hard thing to beat. You crave it all the time. Mike has more of an issue with this then I do. I stopped drinking coffee recently because of the sugar. I am sticking to water with lemon in it and maybe a few servings of milk with Carnation Instant Breakfast in it.

We took out pork, with the exception of some ham for sandwiches. We went way down in our meals with hamburger in them. We started buying and eating more chicken and fish. Fruits and vegetable for sides. Still eat rice. All the bread we buy is whole wheat. Still eat Mayo and butter. Real butter.

My First Few Weeks of Exercising (May 8th thru today)

I first joined the YMCA on May 3rd of this year. Mike joined a little earlier. They have a sliding scale membership and it took a few weeks to get my membership going, but I only have to pay a little over $11 a month to have a membership.

If you don't think you can afford a gym membership please check at your local YMCA.

Don't let the fact that they are a religious institution sway you from joining. I am not religious, but have a god of my understanding and not one person has ever struck up a conversation about religion inside.

We had decided on the YMCA because of the vast amount of programs and facility features they have for a gym. From separate locker rooms for everyone, (Adult/Children/Family changing/locker rooms) a pool, sauna and weight lifting machines to group classes, they have everything for everyone.

I am trying not to sound like an advertisement and even yesterday when I was leaving there were some people taking a tour and when I scooted past them I had to say, "It's awesome!!!!!" It's because they are awesome!!!

I know I said I joined on May 3rd, but hubby and I went camping that weekend so we didn't start working out until the following Tuesday.

May 9th - My very first class taken at the Y was called Fat Blast Cardio and is with a wonderful instructor named Amanda.  It was a great class that had me sweating.

May 10th - Wednesday morning I tried Zumba Gold. It is for beginners and seniors and helped me get down some of the steps as well as got me sweating. Bonnie was the instructor and she is very zesty! She is also the Fitness Director for the facility.

May 11th - Did a class called Deep Stretch Yoga with Leah. My stomach got very upset and I ended up throwing up in class. We figured it had something to do with the fact that I ate a tuna fish sandwich within an hour of class. I will never do that again.

May 12th - Took the day off as I still felt sick from the night before. I also learned about how in yoga toxins are being pulled out of your body, so now I believe it was a combo of eating and the toxins.

May 13th - 14th - Took these days off also.

May 15th - Morning Basic Step class. Again with Bonnie. I grabbed a higher step than I normally would because I knew I wouldn't remember all the steps and I wanted a better workout. It worked out really well and I sweated a lot.

May 16th - Fat Blast Cardio. I went a little early and walked the treadmill to warm up a little. (Mike does Tia Chi when I am doing this class and we warmed up together.) Amanda was sick, but the sub, Lisa was GREAT! Sweat City!!!

May 17th - Zumba Gold with Bonnie. This time another member I recently met (Her name is Marie!) was talking to me before class started and asked if I had taken the regular Zumba class yet. She said the instructor, Chris, was "hot". Hmmmm, well, who can turn down the opportunity to watch some hot guy teach you how to Zumba and exercise? I went to Zumba that night for the first time. WOW! What an incredible work out that was! He is hot, by the way. :)

May 18th - My first Pilates class with Rebecca. She says it is an intermediate class, but it is a really good class that helps your core. I even sweated in there. That night I went to my second Zumba class taught by Chris. You know they say you can lose over 800 calories per hour with Zumba? They are not kidding. WHEW..More sweat!!!

May 19th - Morning Zumba class. The instructor wasn't there and there was a sub named Charlotte. Okay, she could be my grandmother, but this does not stop the woman! Really fantastic instructor. Chris was there, taking the class and taught a few songs. More Sweat!

May 20th - I went to a morning class called PLUS - It is a supportive class for women who are shy about the gym and want support from other women who are trying to loss weight. I met Jewel for the first time, who runs the class. (She has a blog also and as soon as I get a link I will share.) It was only us, but she explained that she had recently taken a month off and I mentioned that since I had now started coming maybe others would. It is a slower paced class where we start by talking about our week and then we do circuit training. It got me warmed up for....yep....Zumba with Chris! Seemed like I sweated less in this class. Not sure if it was because I tried to take the class in my bare feet, but it was still an excellent class.

May 21 - Day Off!!

After doing this workout for the week I think I finally have my weekly schedule down.

MON- Simply Yoga
TUES - Pilates and Fat Blast Cardio
WED - Zumba Gold and Zumba and Deep stretch Yoga
THURS - Pilates and Zumba
FRI - Zumba and machine weight work
SAT - PLUS and Zumba
SUN - DAY OFF

We will see what gets added in or removed as time goes on.

Thank for reading!

Welcome to our Blog! Click here to learn all about the Exercise Couple.

Hi and welcome to our blog!

We are Mike and Mary. We have been married for 22 1/2 years  and have two grown sons. (And other children from first marriages, etc.) All of our children are now adults and we really wanted to get into better shape. We both have extremely different needs in our weight journey. Mike wants to gain weight and I want to lose weight.

I thought it would be interesting to blog our journey together.

I wanted to add in what I do as a side service. I recently started, but hope things will pick up soon.

My service is called:

Minister Mary - An Ohio Wedding Officiant <---Click it to go to my services Facebook page. 
(I can marry couples in Ohio!)

Mike has his blog page and I have one also. (I can't promise Mike will post a lot, you now how men are....still love you though!) I'll post quite often.

When we started this at the end of March 2017, we just started walking a local walking path called the, "Western Reserve Greenway Trail". It is a very long path in which a lot of locals walk and bicycle. After we had walked the path for about a month and up to 5 miles we decided we should just get a gym membership. Mike is older then 60 so he gets a membership through his insurance. It's called Silver Sneakers and if you have someone who is older or disabled they should get a gym membership too!

We have more than one gym we could have gotten a membership at and looked at all of them before deciding that our good old YMCA (This is our local one!) would be the best place for us both.

Here are our starting stats:

Mike: Height - 6'6" - Weight - 170 lbs (32/34 pants)
Mary: Height - 5'2"(in shoes) - Weight - 190 lbs (XL - Size 16/18)

Our Weight (Gain/Lose) Goals!

Mike - Weight - 200 -210 pounds or Gain 30 to 40 pounds
Mary - Weight -  125-130 pounds or Lose 60 to 65 pounds

Will update images in our pages later today.
That is also where updates will be on how much weight we have gained and lost.


Our starting pictures: